SPOKANE—Michael C. Ormsby, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that the Grand Jury returned an eight-count indictment today charging Dr. Craig A. Morgenstern, age 45, with: three counts of Travel with Intent to Engage in Illicit Sexual Contact with a Child, with each charge carrying a maximum possible penalty of not more than 30 years of imprisonment; four counts of Production of Child Pornography, with each charge carrying a maximum possible penalty of not less than 15 years nor more than 30 years of imprisonment; one count of Aggravated Sexual Abuse of a Child, which charge carries a maximum possible penalty of not less than 30 years nor more than a life term of imprisonment; and one count of Attempted Production of Child Pornography, which charge carries a maximum possible penalty of not less than 15 years nor more than 30 years of imprisonment. A conviction of any of these eight counts mandates registration as a sex offender.

The investigation of this matter is being conducted by the Stevens County Sheriff’s Office, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Anyone with information about this case or any potential victim is urged to call the Detective Division with the Steven County Sheriff’s Office at (509) 684-5296 or the FBI at (206) 622-0460.

The case is being prosecuted by Stephanie J. Lister and James A. Goeke, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the Eastern District of Washington, as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the United States Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. The Project Safe Childhood Initiative (“PSC”) has five major components:

Integrated federal, state, and local efforts to investigate and prosecute child exploitation cases, and to identify and rescue children;

For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. An individual charged with a criminal offense is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.